When a Spade is Not a Spade
by tmtcltb
Summary: Sasha Cooper sees something she wishes that she hadn't on the Nathan James.


Sasha Cooper walked down a pathway of the USS Nathan James, pretending that she wasn't lost. Although she had served in the United States Navy for close to eighteen years, she had actually spent little time aboard ship. In fact, the only times that she had set foot on anything larger than a motorboat, it had been simply a means of getting from one place to another and, since planes were faster and more convenient, was a rarely used means of transportation at that.

It was something that she and Tom had never seen eye-to-eye on. To him, the entire point of joining the Navy was to be on the open seas - well, and to piss off his father - but mostly because of the ocean. Tom loved the freedom. The feeling that he was on his own island, connected to and yet removed from the remainder of the world.

That was the reason she had been so shocked to hear that Tom had accepted President Michener's promotion to CNO. To Sasha, the idea of Tom Chandler riding a desk was as incongruous as the idea of her resigning to become a housewife. She presumed that Darien's death had been the trigger. Someone had to take care of the kids, after all.

Sasha was more relieved than she would have ever admit when she saw the door to the wardroom. Pulling it open a few inches, she was greeted by the surprising sight of Lieutenant Granderson, the serving XO, bending over Lieutenant Green, head of the TAC team, their heads almost touching, her hand on his arm, as they spoke quietly. Sasha's eyebrows rose as she took in the flagrant violation of the Navy's rules, which she probably would have ignored, if there hadn't been the issue of the ring on Lieutenant Green's left hand.

She had met both lieutenants yesterday upon her arrival and they had seemed like solid officers. Tom certainly put a lot of stock in both of them - especially Granderson, who he had promoted to acting XO over the ship's more experienced TAO. But Sasha knew that long stretches aboard ship challenged even the most dedicated of spouses. It was one of the reasons she had broken things off with Tom. She had watched her parents' marriage disintegrate under the strain of repeated deployments, which had eventually led to infidelity by both parties, and was unwilling to run the risk of repeating their mistakes. So she had ended it, far too young at twenty-three to understand that she had actually been lucky enough to stumble upon a man strong enough, and loyal enough, to resist the temptation.

Sasha considered Lieutenant Green critically. He was a handsome man and she had overheard him cracking jokes with Jesse after they came aboard. Definitely the kind of guy who who tended to have had a girl in every port. When it came time to get married, he had probably gone with someone traditional. Perhaps a college sweetheart who he had dated on and off for years. The sort of woman who was willing to put her own career on hold to take care of the kids while her husband spent nine months of the year away. Someone like Darien.

Sasha froze, shocked by the direction her thoughts had taken. She had never resented or been jealous of Darien. In fact, the woman was exactly the type of woman Sasha had told Tom that he should marry. They had both seen what a struggle it was to keep a relationship alive when one of them was constantly gone for work - and that was without adding kids to the mix. It only made sense to find a spouse outside the military. One who didn't have to travel, one who wasn't at risk of leaving for a mission on a moment's notice. Sasha had used the same criteria in selecting her own husband. A CIA analyst based out of Virginia, he knew enough about her job not to resent her frequent absences, but rarely did field work and was almost always in town to welcome her home with a smile and a home-cooked meal.

Caught up in our own thoughts, Sasha was caught off-guard when Tom's amused voice reached her ears. "Not sure if you want to go in?"

Sasha cocked her head towards the wardroom. "Not sure if I want to interrupt the little tete-a-tete going on between your officers."

Tom frowned as the implication behind her words sunk in. Pushing the door all the way open he took in the sight of the two lieutenants, before turning back to Sasha with a smile that bordered on smug. "Since when do you care about the fraternization rules?"

Sasha stared at Tom incredulously as he walked past her, waving Green and Granderson back to their seats as they moved to stand. "New pictures of Frankie?"

"Yes, sir, he's so big already!" Lieutenant Granderson gushed before noticing Sasha. "Ma'am."

"I heard a rumor that you were tapped to be the little guy's godmother," Tom continued as he helped himself to a plate of food.

"Can't say I really had a choice in matter," Green said with a snort, before nodding politely to Sasha. "Pretty sure saying no would have been a divorceable offense."

"You sure know how to make a woman feel loved, Green," Granderson responded with a roll of her eyes. Sasha noticed the twist of Tom's mouth and knew without a doubt that he was laughing at her. Perhaps she had misread the situation - it did seem unlikely that Lieutenant Green was carrying on an affair with a close friend of his wife - but the two _did_ seem very comfortable with each other.

Not that different from the way Sasha felt around Tom, as though they had slipped right back into old habits.

"Kara mentioned that you and Jed have been coming by regularly to check if there is anything she or Frankie need," Green said. "I appreciate it, sir."

"Can't say I really have a choice in the matter," Tom replied, mimicking Green's earlier comment. "Ashley is completely enamored with your son. You have a built-in babysitter right there."

Granderson was the one to notice Sasha's puzzled look. "Kara was our TAO before she became President Michener's military adviser, ma'am."

"Kara sent a picture of Frankie dressed in an outfit that Lieutenant Granderson purchased as a gift," Green added, tossing his phone to Sasha so she could see the outfit in question.

Sasha gave the man another assessing look. Maybe he wasn't the traditionalist she had pegged him for. She glanced down at the picture, one of a baby who looked no more than a couple months old wearing a tiny cap and some sort of stretch suit covered in anchors. She did the math. Green might not be a traditionalist, but he wasn't big on frat rules either, apparently. She filed that information away for future reference.

"Cute kid."

"I've actually run into Ms. Hansen there a few times as well, Lieutenant Granderson. How is wedding planning going?" This time there was no missing the mirth dancing in Tom's eyes. Sasha had to force herself not to scowl, knowing that he was going to taunt her mercilessly for her complete misinterpretation of the scene earlier, as Granderson went into an explanation of the plans that her fiance - a Ms. Sarah Hansen - had made for their upcoming nuptials.

A few minutes of chitchat later, both lieutenants excused themselves and Sasha turned to Tom with an exasperated look. "Did you enjoy that?"

"Absolutely."


End file.
